


Wolf Bite

by Darkhymns



Category: Tales of Symphonia
Genre: Alternate Universe - Little Red Riding Hood Fusion, F/M, Fluff, Humor, Romantic Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-03
Updated: 2019-11-03
Packaged: 2021-01-21 12:35:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21299555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Darkhymns/pseuds/Darkhymns
Summary: Most people might say it's not advisable to make friends with a werewolf, but Lloyd gave Colette nothing to be afraid of. That, and her weakness for fluffy doggy ears had won out over her caution.
Relationships: Colette Brunel/Lloyd Irving
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15





	Wolf Bite

**Author's Note:**

> Based off this [pic](https://lloydart.tumblr.com/post/187764814956/if-the-darkness-falls-and-my-angel-calls-in-my) by frayed-symphony! This was meant to be written for Halloween, but now it's a few days late and it's not exactly spooky scary, but hope it's enjoyable anyway!

"And where are you off to at this late hour, young one?"

Colette turned with a quick half-step, nearly tripping over herself on the hem of her red cloak. But luckily the weight of the basket she carried seemed to offset her tumble, righting her balance again. "Oh! Mr. Huntsman! I'm sorry, I didn't see you there."

The huntsman made no obvious expression, instead moving up from the pathway to be more visible in the moonlight. His leather boots crunched against the gravel on the ground, his felt hat nocked perfectly over his rather wild hair. Colette noticed his hunting rifle slung over his right shoulder, his hand near it for an easy reach. "My name is not actually Huntsman, you know…"

"Ah right, sorry! Good evening, Mr. Kratos." Colette waved to the man. They had crossed paths numerous times before in the forest, it being so close to town. He was always so kind and would tell her when the roads were safe to go through! But she was surprised to find him here at dusk, especially when she had been trying to not be found herself…

"Do you not usually visit Phaidra much earlier in the day?" Kratos asked, all while keeping an eye on the dense foliage around them. The leaves, usually so bright underneath the midday sunshine, seemed to soak up all the shadows that the coming night gave. Even more so now that autumn had come, turning the once bright green to lustrous shades of red and yellow. "I would expect she would be asleep now."

Colette had anticipated this, so with a twiddle of her fingers against the handwoven handle of her basket, she prepared her little lie. Hopefully, Kratos wouldn't be able to tell…

"I'm taking care of grandmother's doggie!" she proudly stated. 

Kratos' expression...didn't change still. But his voice held some disbelief. "So, she got herself a pet?"

"Yeah! Just recently. A stray she found in the forest. She took it home but she gets tired very easily. So, she's asked me to feed it and take it out for walks when she’s unable to."

Another pause. "This late?"

"Yes! He's more of a night-owl type of doggy, hehe."

"Hm." Kratos turned away for a moment, considering. "I have not come across any lost dogs during my travels in the forest."

"Well, maybe he just got here," Colette helpfully suggested.

"...I suppose so."

Trying not to let the relief show on her face, Colette arranged the red cloak she wore, as well as fit the hood better atop her head. Her long hair sneaked out from its confines, but she would worry about fixing that later. “I should be going now. The doggy gets a little fidgety when hungry…”

Kratos looked around the woods once more, down the tree-lined pathway, where the night birds sang from out of sight. "I believe I should come with you."

"Oh no! Um, I mean.." she hastily tried to recover. "He gets scared very easily. It even took him a while to start warming up to me." That part was very true indeed.

The huntsman raised an eyebrow. “And your father is okay with you traveling out so late?”

She nodded quickly. Well, one more little lie wouldn’t hurt! “Yes. But I won’t stay out for too long.” She smiled. “Don’t worry. I have it all planned out!”

Maybe that was too self-assured there, but the basket felt heavy in her arms. She would really like to get going now!

“If you’re certain…” Kratos said, and she nodded her head quickly. “Just remember to get some rest then when you arrive, and don’t overdo it.”

“I promise!” she said, and just when she was about to leave, Kratos still had more to say.

"Colette, I must warn you of one thing however, if you insist on traveling. A creature has been sighted in these woods recently. It's been scaring the townsfolk, with reports of food being stolen and the like. It could be dangerous."

"Ah, I'll be careful!” Though while she knew this was a risk, still she asked. "What...does this creature look like?"

Kratos looked straight at her, seeming to assess his own words before saying them aloud. "From the few sightings reported, this creature appears to be… dog-like."

She knew for sure who he meant then.

* * *

Colette hadn't been lying exactly when she said was taking care of a certain dog.

The woods were truly much darker at this hour, but she would press on, hurrying down the path she would take each day to visit her grandmother. Except this time, her basket was laden with more food than usual, full of prepared roast beef sandwiches and the like, instead of the usual sweet cookies and gels she’d take, although she had plenty of those too! It was just her grandmother didn’t typically eat this much, but her new friend however…

There was a bend in the pathway that led her away from the direction towards her grandmother’s house, and instead much further into a thicker grove, enough so that the hem of her bright cloak would sometimes catch onto the brambles that lined her way.

Not seeing her friend right away, and hoping the huntsman wasn’t near, she called out. “Hey! I brought some- oops!”

Of course, she was falling again, this time down a slope, the fallen leaves making her descent more slippery.

A pair of arms quickly caught her around the waist, lifting her up easily.

“Whoa! Are you okay?”

His breath was warm against her ear, and she felt the familiar fur fringe from his coat tickle her neck. She giggled. “I’m okay, Lloyd.”

“You need to be careful! You almost fell down this steep hill…”

Colette still couldn’t help but smile, falling against his hold like he was a big fuzzy blanket, something she genuinely liked after the chill of the ending day. “I’m sorry, but I came by just like I promised!” With reluctance, she stepped out of her friend’s hold, holding up her basket to him. “See? I brought some food!”

Within the dim glow of the sky, she could still see him clearly. His brown hair was painted with streaks of gold from the setting sun, doing the same with his great furry ears that extended from each side. Colette kept herself from reaching out to pet them, even though instinct kept telling her to! It didn’t help that Lloyd also had a cute fluffy tail, one that kept wagging behind him… Oh! Did that mean he was happy to see her?

“Oh really? You didn’t have to do that…” But Lloyd smiled wide, sharp teeth gleaming white. Maybe to another person, it would have looked scary, but Colette could only find adorableness in each of Lloyd’s features. Clawed hands that had held her just moments ago now fidgeted, looking ready to take the basket from her hands.

With a grin, Colette held out the basket. “It’s for you though! And my arms are a bit tired from carrying it actually…”

Lloyd blinked, finally seeing into the basket. “Did you carry this much?! It’s not like…well, okay. I would probably eat everything…”

At that, Colette could barely contain her excitement anymore. “Not just that! Look, look!” Reaching into the basket, underneath a heaping of sandwiches and apple gels, she pulled out the item she had seen in the local shop window earlier that day and knew it would be perfect for her new friend. “Isn’t it so cute?”

Furry ears flicking, Lloyd stared at what she held. “Did… you get me a collar?”

“Uh huh! I even put in a nametag for you. See?” She pointed out to the bright, jingling tag, shaped like a bone. Sure enough, it said, ‘Lloyd’ on it!

“Um…” Lloyd’s tail drooped. “That’s uh…”

Colette, seeing Lloyd not as excited, felt her own hopes falter. “Oh… you don’t like it?”

“It’s not that! I… think it’s really cool!” Lloyd perked up, grinning again. “Heh, it’s even red…”

Colette’s mood brightened once more. “Yeah! I remember you saying it was your favorite color. And see here?” She pointed to the back of the tag which stated, ‘If found, return to Colette Brunel.’ “That way, if you ever get lost, someone can help you come back to me!”

Lloyd blinked. “I’m not sure if people will hang around me long enough to read that though…”

"Well, it's good for just in case! That way you always have a home to go to."

Lloyd grinned at that, tail wagging again, scratching the back of his head with just a bit of shyness. "Heh, thanks, Colette. Um, I'll wear it after I eat! I'm kinda starving…"

And just as they had done since she first met the werewolf, Lloyd and Colette sat on the leaf-covered ground, ready to share their meal together.

Colette had seen many odd things in her venture through the woods, but the werewolf boy she had come upon had been quite new to her. Like a stray, he had been hungry and very lost, his fur and hair a little matted, his clothes ragged, and his eyes a bit wary as she moved closer. Maybe if it had been someone else, she would have been frightened, but she felt that he was more scared himself…

* * *

.

.

.

Colette heard something shuffling in the brush next to her. On her way from leaving her grandmother's, the day was nearly ending, the dusk painting a soft, melancholy glow over the trees. The leaves color were fading, blending with the fierce red of the sunset. 

She heard nothing afterwards, but that only pulled at her curiosity even more, making her venture from the safe roads towards the thicket. Branches reached out to snag her cloak, her hair, and her confidence. But then she found a boy her age, his back turned to her. He looked like any normal person… until she got closer and noticed the now obvious fluffy tail he sported. 

It was hard not to audibly squeal at the sight. Instead, she cleared her throat, then call out, "Hello? Are you okay?"

Something about his eyes then had been so striking, a russet brown that matched his fur (he had fur!) along with pointed furry ears that stuck out from the depths of his wild hair (and that hair seemed familiar too?). He turned to her with tension in his shoulders, claws gripping onto something.

It was...a sandwich? Had he been trying to make one? But it seemed to be missing a few ingredients…

"I didn't - I only, I just took a little bit!" The boy growled out, and she had to think on that word a bit. _Growled._ She saw the sharp teeth bared, like a scared puppy who only wanted to feel safe again. "I'm not hurting anyone…"

Someone else might have fled at the sight of his teeth and his claws, the way his eyes caught the setting sun's light. But Colette, seeing the lunch her grandmother could not finish, held out her basket to him. 

"Would you like some cookies? I have some fruit sandwiches if you'd want that!"

The boy stared, teeth no longer as bared, but his ears moving at her voice. He looked to the attempt of a sandwich in his hands. The low timbre of his voice was still there, but soft instead of rough this time. "You can put fruit in these…?"

Colette tried to take a step forward, but the other noticed and scurried backwards in the dirt. The poor sandwich had fallen the ground in his haste. She could then more clearly see the black claws that took the place of his fingernails. “Hey!”

“Sorry! I’m not going to hurt you…” With her experience of treating scared animals before, Colette then knelt, so that they could be on equal grounds. The boy still seemed on edge, his fur bristling, his eyes seeming to even glow from the sunlight reflecting off them. She then reached into her basket and held out the fruit sandwich. “Do you want a bite?”

The sandwich had left her grip in a flash. The furry boy was still some distance away from her, but she could see him chewing at his food, tail wagging. It was much too cute, she realized.

"What's your name?" she asked, hoping he was calmer now to tell her. Did he have one? Maybe she could give him one, just like she always did with the stray doggies… She brushed that thought aside. He was not a doggy! Maybe… It was hard to think differently with those ears and tail.

The boy looked to the side, munching on that fruit sandwich, red coloring his cheeks. "Well… give me your name and I'll give you mine."

So she did.

.

.

.

* * *

That had been a few weeks ago, and now the boy’s fur was fuller, and his clothes of much better quality after Colette sneaked some from her home. His ears would perk up as she spoke to him, and his tail was as fluffy as ever! (She made sure to groom it on the other days she had come by to visit him). Lloyd’s smile was always so bright now too. It was hard to see him as the same scared creature that she first met.

Lloyd's tail was wagging at rapid speeds as he chowed down on feast presented to him. "There's so much roast beef!" he was exclaiming while he was chewing on the sandwich at the same time. "This is great!" Then his eyes swiveled to something else that Colette was eating. "Is that a tiny cupcake?"

"Yeah! They're like gels but way tastier!" Finishing her own, she reached into the basket and held up another, it's fruity frosting so bright, matching her cloak. "Here. Since your hands are full, I can feed it to you?"

Lloyd had more than one foodstuff in his hands (or claws? Which was more accurate?), consisting of half a sandwich, a gel or two or three, and even some of the cookies. Colette wondered how he carried it all so effortlessly while eating. "Oh. Yeah I guess that makes sense." His tail was wagging again, but she could already see in his sharp-toothed smile that he was happy. "I bet I can eat it in one bite!"

"They're not that tiny!" Colette warned, holding up one of the sweets in her hand. "Or maybe I can throw it and you can catch it!"

"Hey, I'm not ready for that!" And before Colette could say she was only joking, Lloyd leaned forward with an 'Ahh' and quickly took the cupcake from her fingers.

She hadn't expected the suddenness, or the warmth of his mouth over her fingertips. Colette only flinched slightly - but didn't pull away.

Lloyd only seemed to realize what he did _after _he'd gobbled up the cupcake from her hold. "Uh, o-oh, sorry! I… was really hungry!"

"Hehe, it's okay," she reassured. “I guess you did eat it in one bite!” Looking back to the basket, she felt a sudden feeling take hold. "I can feed you more!"

"Huh? Well, I can just set this stuff down and -"

"No, it’s okay! Let me! Please…"

About a dozen or so cupcakes later, most of the food Colette had brought over was gone. She felt Lloyd sit next to her, his face so bright from all the food he got to eat. She hoped he really didn't mind on her insistence on feeding him…

"You really didn't have to bring me so much stuff, Colette. Even though it was really good!" His right ear flicked as if by its own accord. "It was probably hard to scratch my ears while feeding me too, so you so you didn't have to…"

"It's okay!" Colette quickly reassured. She sat up straighter, eye straying to those furry ears. "But, do you still want me to now?"

Lloyd immediately knelt closer to her, his tail thumping against the ground. "Yeah! If you don't mind? It just feels really nice."

Colette was experienced in petting furry ears for many years! Sometimes dogs would just instantly trot up to her, sitting at her feet, ears – from the pointed variety to the long, floppy ones – would lift, waiting for Colette’s famous pets. She made note of Lloyd’s own (pointed and really, _really_ fluffy) and got to work on giving him the best ear scratches he ever received in his life.

Lloyd fluttered his eyes shut, facing her still as both her hands dug through his hair, fingers gently massaging his scalp, and then massaging his ears. “Hehe…” he chuckled, and Colette knew she was definitely doing something right.

Just one thing though – her arms were a bit tired. She wasn’t used to doing this for someone taller than her! “Ah, Lloyd, do you think…”

“Huh? Oh! Right, sorry. I forgot…” With that Lloyd promptly laid his head on her lap, sharp teeth so bright in his grin, his russet hair splayed against her red cloak. “Better?”

“Much better!” Colette answered, and so with no more pressure in her arms, she scratched behind his cute fluffy ears again. His tail was thumping against the ground again, his happiness so plain for her to see, giving her confidence in her touches.

This is what they did on most days she visited Lloyd. It wasn’t always at the same place, Lloyd moving around the woods – for reasons she was beginning to suspect. But when they found each other like now; they’d have snacks, or chat, or just lay like this on the ground, her hands so eager to make Lloyd as happy as he was now.

And in such a moment like now, she felt she had to ask. “Lloyd…” she said, hands still entwined in his hair.

“Hm?” Lloyd answered. His eyes were closed, his face so peaceful. “What is it?”

“Do you… do you already have a home to go to, Lloyd?”

Off in the distance, she heard the soft calling of birds, the wind rustling the leaves on the ground. But from Lloyd, she heard nothing. His tail had stopped moving.

She thought he would get up to leave the reach of her hands, but instead he turned his head to the side, his eyes open but looking away. “Why do you wanna know?”

In the short time they had known each other, Colette realized she had never asked Lloyd this, remembering the scared boy from her first encounter. Maybe it was invasive to ask, maybe it was rude. But underneath the darkening sky, with the sunlight shining on his cheek, it seemed now that….

"I'm sure your family must miss you,” she said, thinking she must have been quiet for too long.

Lloyd stayed still in his current position. She couldn’t see his expression too clearly. “My family didn't want me… and I can't make trouble for the one person who did." He paused, the coming dark casting shadows against his hair. "It was my fault anyway. I didn’t use to always be like this, you know.”

There were so many questions in her head – it was hard to just pick one. But in her eagerness, she probably went with the worst one she could ask. “You mean you didn’t use to be so fluffy?”

“Huh?”

Colette panicked. _Oh, that was so dumb to say!_ “S-sorry! I meant–”

“Wait, shh.” Lloyd turned his head back towards her, his pointed ears now perked up sharply. Eyes darted around. “Someone’s coming.”

“Wh-” Again, Colette didn’t have much time to respond. Because suddenly, Lloyd was hugging her. Not just catching her as she fell, as she tended to do so much, but embracing her so fiercely. She felt the fur fringe of his coat against her face, the soft growling reverberating in his chest. He took her further into the grove they had previously had their picnic in, then hid them both among the brush.

Colette kept quiet. It seemed like Lloyd wanted her to. But also, she felt if she said anything, she’d no longer feel this closeness again.

She finally heard the footsteps. _Kratos?_ she thought. Was he looking for her? She even tried to hold her breath, though Lloyd’s scent surrounded her completely.

It seemed to last much too short – Lloyd’s arms soon relaxed, though his hands remained on her shoulders. His voice was against her ear. “That was close…” She felt the turning of his head. He didn’t let go, she noticed. “Sorry. I think someone’s… hunting me, if that makes any sense.”

Colette nodded. “It’s okay. N-not about the hunting part! Just…” She bit her lip, staying close. “Does this happen a lot?”

She could feel him weighing his answer in his head, poised on his tongue. “I guess so…”

The image of a scared Lloyd in the forest came back to her, so strong and so sad.

And again, she wanted to know more where he came from, how he came to be how he was now. Had Colette ever met Lloyd before his time as a werewolf? Should she secretly be grateful that such a thing happened, or she never would have met him in the first place? _That’s so selfish of me._

Lloyd still didn’t let go of her. Maybe because she hadn’t moved away yet. “Ah, I’m probably in your way. I can just…” Her hands had been pressed against his chest. She lifted her head, and just then couldn’t help but look at him.

There was something about the way his hands held her, the way he stared at her. The setting sun reflecting off his eyes got Colette entranced. She couldn't help it if she leaned in just a little, enough to see the hidden tiredness in his face. Lloyd was so very tired, living out here in the woods alone. One day, could she bring him back home? Sneak him in through her window like she'd do with the strays in the village before her Father said they could not keep them? But Lloyd was…

When he kissed her, she felt his breath, rapid and warm. Her tongue brushed against the sharp edge of his teeth. But he didn't hurt her. He never would. She knew he would never hurt anyone, but he had been living all alone, in fear that people would think he did.

Lloyd broke the kiss quickly, blinking at her. Colette felt guilty suddenly.

"Oh! Sorry… I've never kissed anyone, so it probably wasn't very good, was it?" She said it with a soft giggle, even if her own words pierced her sharply.

Another fierce embrace from him. His warmth was everywhere. Again, like a big fuzzy blanket she could fall into. "Don't be stupid," he said, the growl in his voice sending vibrations throughout her entire body.

Perhaps things were meant to go a different way. If they hadn’t been interrupted, maybe Lloyd would have stayed closed off, but she could feel the beating of his heart against her own chest. He was so warm.

They stayed like that for a while.

* * *

The sky was getting so dark. The sun hidden behind the trees, leaving only its glow of soft pink against the edges of the clouds overhead. Far later than when she would visit her grandmother. But both Lloyd and Colette remained seated on the ground, his arms still around her. She hadn’t wanted him to let go.

“My dad’s a woodcutter,” he was telling her, his voice back to being lively and eager. “He makes a lot of cool stuff, like these figures and even swords! He lives in this forest too, but I haven’t gone back to see him.” A worried fidget, his hands placed over her own as they laid in Colette’s lap. “I don’t want to cause any trouble for him.”

“But, it’s not your fault you’re like this though!” she argued, turning to him. “You couldn’t have known that person you were trying to help would bite you…”

“Yeah, I guess so… Man, it really hurt!” Lloyd frowned at the memory. “They looked like a normal person to me… but I just look like _this_ all the time instead. It doesn’t make sense!”

Colette considered this, remembering the legends of werewolves. “Maybe each werewolf is different? Or he bit you really hard and that made the difference?”

“He did bite me hard…” Lloyd whined.

“I bet you could bite him back!” she said with her full support.

“I don’t really want to bite people though…”

But he was laughing, looking as happy as he did when they had their picnic. But Colette made the mistake of looking up at the sky, mentally noting the hour it must be.

"I… should probably go back.” She only said it because she felt she had to, only that. Her words were faint, too drawn by the fuzzy softness that Lloyd’s body offered.

“Oh.” Something held in the air – his voice struggling. “I didn’t know it was already this late.”

Colette tapped her fingers over his claws. “Were you… going to ask me something?”

His hands were still around her, along with the scent of leaves dried out by the sun only to soak in the night's shadows. She could see the dark claws on his hands, entwined among her fingers, but they had never frightened her. In Lloyd, she always saw someone so kind and pure, even in their short time knowing each other.

When he finally asked the question she could see he was struggling with, it was almost like a beg. "Can you stay tonight?"

The leaves were so soft underneath them both. Even the chill of the wind didn’t bother her so much, not with him holding her. It made her remember the days she would nap outside when she was younger.

Lloyd seemed to realize the note of desperation in his voice, trying to brush it away with a laugh. “Ah, that’s… kind of a weird thing to ask, yeah?” She could see his tail to the side, the tip brushing against the ground methodically.

“Well… I think it would be okay if I stay for a little while?” she said, leaning away from his chest, but only so she could smile up at him. “We just ate so… we should let the meal settle!” She wondered if that made any sense, actually.

But Lloyd was grinning down at her, those teeth so sharp, and already finding herself wanting to kiss him again. How had that happened before? Had she just imagined it? “Yeah! Okay, for just a little while then.”

She nodded, then dared something else. She felt too shy to kiss him but maybe… “It’s probably easier to settle if we laid down?”

Lloyd didn’t even hesitate. “Right! That’s smart, Colette.”

“Heh, thanks!”

So, it felt so easy to lean into his hold, to lower themselves to the ground, the sunset-colored leaves all around them. The sky took up her vision, so close to nightfall. Sometimes the woods could be eerie at this hour, but she felt Lloyd hug her still, feeling comfortable. And always warm.

“I forgot to bring a blanket…” she said, turning towards him so she could lean into his chest. “I’m sorry… But your fur is really…”

“Hm? You trailed off, are you-?” Lloyd blinked, turning towards Colette who was already fast asleep. He smiled, cuddling more to her. “Heh… thanks for staying, Colette.”

The wind ruffled the leaves, Lloyd’s fur, Colette’s red cloak, and then, “It’s okay… if you bite me…”

“Huh?”

But she still seemed to be asleep. Lloyd wondered if he had just imagined that. “Dork…” he muttered, already feeling too sleepy himself to question it.

Neither ever felt the chill of the autumn winds all night.


End file.
